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Fiction Action & Adventure

The God is Not Willing

The First Tale of Witness

by (author) Steven Erikson

Publisher
Transworld
Initial publish date
Sep 2022
Category
Action & Adventure, General, Dark Fantasy
  • Paperback / softback

    ISBN
    9781529176872
    Publish Date
    Sep 2022
    List Price
    $21.99
  • Paperback / softback

    ISBN
    9781529177091
    Publish Date
    Sep 2022
    List Price
    $13.99

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Description

'Awe-inspiring. Prepare to fall in love with epic fantasy all over again.' ANNA SMITH SPARK, author of the bestselling The Court of Broken Knives

'Erikson is an extraordinary writer . . . treat yourself.' STEPHEN R. DONALDSON

The thrilling opening chapter in an epic new fantasy from the author of The Malazan Book of the Fallen...

Many years have passed since three Teblor warriors brought carnage and chaos to Silver Lake.
Now the tribes of the north no longer venture into the southlands. The town has recovered and yet the legacy remains. Indeed, one of the three, Karsa Orlong, is now revered as a god, albeit an indifferent one. In truth, many new religions have emerged and been embraced across the Malazan world. There are those who worship Coltaine, the Black-Winged Lord, and the cult of Iskar Jarak, Guardian of the Dead, is popular among the Empire's soldiery.

Responding to reports of a growing unease among the tribes beyond the border, a legion of Malazan marines marches towards Silver Lake. They aren't quite sure what they're going to be facing, but, while the Malazan military has evolved and these are not the marines of old, one thing hasn't changed: they'll handle whatever comes at them. Or die trying.

And in those high mountains, a new warleader has risen amongst the Teblor. Scarred by the deeds of Karsa Orlong, he intends to confront his god even if he has to cut a bloody swathe through the Malazan Empire to do so.

But further north, a new threat has emerged and now it seems it is the Teblor who are running out of time. Another long-feared migration is about to begin and this time it won't just be three warriors. No, this time tens of thousands are poised to pour into the lands to the south. And in their way, a single company of Malazan marines . . .

It seems the past is about to revisit Silver Lake, and that is never a good thing . . .

'A master of lost and forgotten epochs, a weaver of ancient epics.' SALON.COM

Acclaim for The Malazan Book of the Fallen:

'This masterwork of the imagination may be the high watermark of epic fantasy.' GLEN COOK

'Arguably the best fantasy series ever written . . . the quality and ambition of the ten books that make up The Malazan Book of the Fallen are unmatched within the genre.' FANTASYBOOKREVIEW

'Nobody does it better than Erikson . . . the best fantasy series around.' SFFWORLD

'In a league of his own in genre fiction terms - by turns lyrical, bawdy, introspective, poetical and blood-soaked . . . incredible.' BOOKGEEKS

'One of the most original and engrossing fantasy series of recent times.' INTERZONE

About the author

Steven Erikson is a New York Times bestselling author renown for writing The Malazan Book of the Fallen, a ten-volume series that has sold millions of copies worldwide and is recognized as number two of the top 10 fantasy books by Fantasy Book Review and one of 30 best fantasy series of all time by Paste Magazine. He is a trained archaeologist and anthropologist who has published over twenty books, most of which explore notions of privilege, power hierarchies, and the rise and fall of civilizations, or take the piss out of the same. Erikson has been nominated for the Locus Award four times and the World Fantasy Award twice. His next novel Rejoice, a Knife to the Heart, is an SF First Contact story, due out in October, 2018. He lives in Victoria, B.C. with his lovely wife Clare.

Steven Erikson's profile page

Editorial Reviews

Awe-inspiring. Prepare to fall in love with epic fantasy all over again.—ANNA SMITH SPARK, author of The Court of Broken Knives

As good as I expected it to be . . . Erikson continues to showcase his talents as an impressive wordsmith . . . mesmerising and memorable. Add to this intense battles, witty banter, advanced warfare, new curses, new gods, and escapades with warrens and this world's supernatural and you'll see why I had such a good time.—GRIMDARK magazine

It is beautiful, it is captivating and utterly enthralling . . . Erikson is unparalleled in both the scope of his imagination and the talent of his prose, but more importantly, he is as insightful and funny as Terry Pratchett ever was.—FANTASY BOOK REVIEW

If The God Is Not Willing lacks the physical weight of the earlier Malazan books, it certainly doesn't lack the emotional heft . . . [this] is Erikson still at the top of his game, a lean, sharply honed and powerful addition to what is already in my mind the pre-eminent fantasy universe of the last few decades.TOR.COM

A determined, focused, well-paced and immensely rich novel of war, peace, hubris, consequence, sorcery and compassion . . . The God is Not Willing is Steven Erikson bringing his A-game, turned up to 11, and delivering what is comfortably one of his three or four best novels to date.—THE WERTZONE